Russia’s top military commander warned on Thursday of a growing threat of conflicts along its borders that could even escalate into a nuclear war.

“The possibility of local armed conflicts along nearly the whole border has increased sharply,” General Nikolai Makarov said, citing the fact that many of the country’s Soviet partners are gravitating towards Nato.

The Baltic states and Eastern European countries in the Soviet-era Warsaw Pact defence treaty have already joined, while Georgia and Ukraine have expressed a desire to join the Western defence alliance that was once the menace of USSR and is still considered Russia’s enemy by conservatives.

“In certain conditions I don’t rule out local and regional armed conflicts developing into a large-scale war, including using nuclear weapons,” Makarov said, RIA Novosti reported.

[4] Russian General: “The USSR Collapsed and the Same Fate Has Been Prepared for the USA”: http://www.prisonplanet.com/russian-general-%e2%80%9cthe-ussr-collapsed-and-the-same-fate-has-been-prepared-for-the-usa%e2%80%9d.html